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Northern Ireland on high alert as supergrass trial nears end
Loyalists cleared of all charges in Belfast terror trial
(about 1 hour later)
The first of the 13 defendants in the Northern Ireland loyalist supergrass trial has been found guilty.
Twelve of the 13 alleged Ulster Volunteer Force members who stood trial for 21 weeks on the word of two supergrasses have been found not guilty of all charges against them, including murder.
Neil Pollock, 36, of Belfast, has been convicted of possession of items intended for terrorism.
Mark Haddock had been accused of being the UVF commander in north Belfast and for being behind the murder of rival Ulster Defence Association boss Tommy English in 2000.
Mr Justice Gillen is still deliberating on his judgment in the non-jury trial. Earlier he banned reporters from tweeting from inside the court.
The prosecution rested solely on the testimonies of two brothers, both self-confessed UVF members, who turned Queen's evidence in return for greatly reduced jail terms.
Security forces in Northern Ireland are on high alert as the judge delivered his verdict in the 71-day trial involving 13 suspected Ulster Volunteer Force members.
But after the 21-week trial and following three weeks of reviewing the evidence, Mr Justice John Gillen delivered a damning assessment of the reliability of supergrasses Robert and Ian Stewart.
Army bomb disposal officers are dealing with a suspect device attached to the railings of a Catholic girls secondary school in north Belfast . The device was found at Our Lady of Mercy school on the Crumlin Road in north Belfast on Wednesday morning.
Describing them as "ruthless criminals and unflinching terrorists", he said he was not convinced that they had turned over a new leaf and decided to tell the truth.
The trial, which is one of the most expensive in Northern Ireland legal history, rests on the testimony of brothers Robert and Ian Stewart who agreed to give evidence against fellow loyalists in return for shorter sentences.
Instead, Mr Justice Gillen described their evidence as being infected with lies.
The 13 defendants include Mark Haddock, the alleged leader of the UVF in the Mount Vernon area of north Belfast who faces a litany of charges, including the murder of rival loyalist Tommy English 12 years ago. English was shot on Halloween night 2000 during a feud between the UVF and the Ulster Defence Association.
Eight other men were accused alongside Haddock of English's murder, UVF membership and numerous other offences. They were all also cleared of all charges.
The Stewart brothers alleged in a Belfast court that Haddock and eight of his co-accused were involved in the murder.
Three men have been cleared of lesser charges, including assisting offenders and perverting the course of justice.
Four others stand accused of lesser offences including assisting offenders, perverting the course of justice, and meting out paramilitary beatings.
The only man to be convicted – 36-year-old Neil Pollock, from Fortwilliam Gardens in Belfast – was found guilty of possession of a sledgehammer intended for use in terrorism.
A 14th man accused walked free from court last month after Mr Justice John Gillen, who is sitting without a jury, ruled that he had no case to answer.
One man who had been on trial had previously walked free from court, after Mr Justice Gillen ruled last month that he had no case to answer.
The trial has been controversial, with supporters of the accused likening the case to high-profile trials in the 1980s, when dozens of both loyalist and republican paramilitaries were jailed on the evidence of former colleagues who turned state's evidence.
The controversial supergrass trial is the first of its kind since the 1980s, when dozens of both loyalist and republican paramilitaries were jailed on the evidence of former colleagues who turned state's evidence, and one of the longest and most expensive in Northern Ireland's legal history.
Sitting for 21 weeks, the trial of Haddock and his co-accused has been one of the longest in Northern Ireland's legal history and is set to be one of the most expensive.
The case was prompted by Operation Ballast, an investigation by Northern Ireland's then police ombudsman, Nuala O'Loan, into alleged collusion between the security forces and members of the UVF in the city.
The 13 accused face other charges including UVF membership, wounding, possessing guns and hijacking mainly carried out by the Mount Vernon unit.
The case was prompted by Operation Ballast, an investigation by Northern Ireland's then Police Ombudsman, Lady Nuala O'Loan, into alleged collusion between the security forces and members of the UVF in the city.
